The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1887-11-25

should get the worst Of IT II 4 hard
enough to argue with an ordinary mater
talist, who hurls statistics and whole strata
OF geological facts at your head, whilst
you only buffet him with deductions
and instincts and the snow fakes Of faith.
that are, alas, so apt to melt In the hot
embers Of our troubles. How little chance, |
then, should / have had against one whose
brain vas systematically s%harpened, and
who had two Thousand years Of experience,
besides all manner OF knowledge Of the
secrets of nature ut her commando Feel.
ing that she would be more likely to con-
vert me than I should to convert her,
thought 1t best to leave the matter alone,
and so sat silent. Many a time since then
have I bitterly regretted that I did so, for
thereby l lost the only opportunity I can
remember having had of ~ascertalning what
Ayesha really believed.
swell, my Holly, art thou tired Of me
already, that thou dost sit so silents" she
said presently, with o little yawn. Faith.
less man! And but half an hour since thou
vast upon thy knees-the posture does not
suit thee, Holly-swearing that thou didst
love me. What shall we dor Nay, l have
1t. I will come and see this youth, the
Lion, as the old man Billali calls him, who
came with thee, and who is now SO sick.
The fever must have run its course by
now, and II he is about to die, I will re
cover him. Fear not, my Holly, I shall
use no magic. Have I not told thee that
there Is NJ such thing as magic; though
there is such a thing as understanding and
applying the forces which are in nature'
Go now, and presently, when l have made
the drug ready, will follow thee"
Accordingly I went, only to find Job and
Ustane in a great state of grief, and declar
ing that Leo was In the throes Of death,
and that they had been searching for me
everywhere. brushed to the couch, and
glanced at him. Clearly he was dying.
He was senscless, and breathing heavily,
u his lips were Quivcring, and every now
and again a little shudder ran down his
frame. knew enough of doctoring to see
that in another hour he would be beyond
the reach of earthly help-perhaps in
another five minutes. How I cursed my
%sclfishness, and the folly that had kept me
lingering by Ayesha's side while my dear
boy lay dyingl Alas! and alas! how easy
the best Of us are lighted down to evil by
the CLEAN of a woman's eyes! What q
wicked wretch was 1! Actually for the
last half hour I had scarcely thought Of
Leo, and this, be it remembered, of the
man who for twenty years had been my
dearest companion, and the one interest
OF my existence. And now perhaps IL WIS
too late!
Iwrung my hands and glanced round.
Ustane was sitting by the couch, and in
her eyes burned the dull light Of despair.
Job was blubberins-1 nm sorry I cannot
call hfsdistress by any more delicate word
audibly in the corner. Seeing my eye fixed
upon him, he Went outside to give way to
his grief in the passage. Obviously the
only hope lay in Ayesha. She, and she
alone-unless indeed she was an impostor,
which l could not belicve-could n him.
I would go and implorc her to come. As
I started to do SO. however, Job came fly.
ing into the room, his hair literally stand.
ing on end with terror.
"Oh, God help us, sirl' he calculated in
q frightened whisper, ''here's a corpse
coming sliding down the passage"
For q moment I was puzzled, but pres
emily, of course, it struck me that he must
have seen Ayesha, wrapped in her grave
like garment, and been deceived by the ex-
traordinary undulating smoothness of her
walk into a belief that She was b,.,hite
ghost gliding toward him. Indccd,A" .hat
very moment the question was settled, for
Ayesha herself was in the apartment, or
rather cave. Job turned and saw her
sheeted form, and then, with II c~onvulsive
howl of tHere it comes!' sprung into a
corner and jnmmed his face against the
wall, and Ustanc, guessing whose tlledrcad
presence must be, Frustrated herself upon
her face.
"Thou CONTEST in a good time, Ayesha,"
I said, "for my boy lies ut the point Of
DEATH"
49," she said, softly; %"provided he be
not dead, it is no matter, for l can bring
him back to life, my Holly. Is that man
there thy servant? and is that the method
wherewith thy servants greet strangers in
thy countrys"
"He = frightened of thy garb, It hath 0
death-likc air." l answered.
She laughed.
"And the girl? Anil see now. It is she
Of whom thou didst speak to me. Well.
bid them both to leave us, and we will see
to this sick lion of thine. / love not that
underlings should perceive my wisdom.'
Thereon 1 told Ustane in Arabic and Job
in English both to leave the room-an or.
der which the latter obeyed readily enough,
and was glad to obey. for he could not in
any way subdue his fear. But it WIS 9th.
erwise with Ustane.
"what does She want," she whispered,
divided between her fear Of the terrible
queen and her anxiety to remain near Leo.
sit is surely the right of IL wife to be neal
her husband when he dieth. Nay, 1 will
| not 90. nv lord tho RnhOonn
(ro be continually